Different Types of Pollution and Methods of Control

The intermixing of contaminants into the natural resources leading to their degradation is known as pollution. The problem of pollution has always been a major issue all around the globe and the need for proper steps to prevent and overcome it has been increasing and has also found some voices in the recent times. The ever increasing rate of pollution has caused severe damage to the ecosystems as can be seen from the rising global warming. Also, the pollution enhances human diseases and the death rates of various animals and plants leading to an imbalance in their population. The growing rate of industries and a higher rate of consumption of fossil fuels gives rise to this undesirable pollution. Constant efforts to bring about the decrement of this pollution so as to ensure a healthy environment is the need of the hour.

Pollution is a concept whose proper understanding requires the understanding of many other related concepts. While studying about pollution, we are going to deal with a number of terms related to chemistry. Different gases, minerals and compounds will form an active part of our discussion about pollution. Hence it would be a good idea to have some basic knowledge about the concepts of chemistry which will aid our study of the different types of pollution. This great course about the basics of chemistry will help you in getting familiar with the basic concepts and will enable you to understand the things being discussed here in a better way.

Here we are going to discuss the different types of pollution and how all these types differ from one another. We will study all these factors in detail and will also study about how we can prevent the pollution of the natural resources. We will try and understand how the pollution is caused and this in turn will help us in understanding how this pollution can be prevented and controlled.

Air Pollution

Air pollution is the contamination of natural air by mixing up of it with many different contaminating particles including chemicals, harmful fumes etc. This type of pollution always behaves as a potential risk, leading to respiratory infections, heart diseases, strokes etc. Other health effects due to air pollution include asthma and cardiac conditions.

The pollutants for air pollution are divided into two categories. The first type of pollutants known as primary pollutants are those which are produced from a certain process like the smoke emitted from the vehicles. The second type of pollutants are termed as the secondary pollutants and these are the ones which are generated due to the reaction of primary pollutants with natural air.

Different pollutants affect the air in different forms. Like the reaction of sulfur oxides and nitrogen oxides results in the production of acid rain. The vehicles, from their exhaust systems, give out the component of carbon monoxide which has an adverse effect on the atmosphere. The ground level ozone which is the basis of certain regions of stratosphere can also act as an air pollutant which in high concentrations aids in the generation of smog. Coal is another source which contaminates the air. If the burning coal gets mixed up with the smoke from some other sources, it results in the generation of smog which is also a major type of air pollution.

Lack of ventilation inside the houses can also lead to health issues resulting from air pollution. For example, the pesticides and other chemicals, brought into use extensively in the homes, are required to be properly exhausted from the house, but this cannot be achieved as a result of improper ventilation. The same is inhaled by the inhabitants and thus leads to health issues. Air pollution is present everywhere and it is very important to protect yourself from the ill effects of this pollution and to remain healthy. This course about the 5 pillars of optimal health will give you some great and highly useful information about living a healthy and happy life.

Water Pollution

It is defined as the constant addition of pollutants to the water bodies resulting in contamination of the water. This makes the concerned water unfavorable for the use for both humans and commercially and is left as a waste only. The contaminated water when mixed with a bigger water body results in the adverse impact on the aquatic species. The major role played in the contamination of water is by the various industrial chemicals and wastes that are thrown into the water body without adequate treatment and thus contaminating the water. The high temperature fluids adversely affect the thermal state of the water and lead to the discoloration of natural clean water.

The list of the contaminants of water also includes many other particles such as detergents being generated by the industries and also from the households which get readily mixed with the water bodies. Testing the extent of water pollution can be done in a number of ways including the physical testing which means to analyze the temperature, solids, concentration and other factors for a particular sample of water. You can check out this well-written blog post about the types of water pollution to get more information about this highly dangerous type of pollution.

Soil Pollution

Basically, the soil pollution refers to the mixing up of soil with the materials which are potent enough to affect the natural soil when mixed up with it in more than adequate proportions. The addition of the contaminated particles to soil happens both due to the human and natural activities in which the former plays a major part.

The most important factor leading to soil pollution is the ever increasing number of construction sites in today’s world. The harmful chemicals which are used in these construction activities harm the environment both during the construction and also after the construction has been completed.

The other factors leading to soil contamination include the landfill and illegal dumping that is usually carried out in the outskirts of urban areas due to which the waste decomposed intermixes with the nutrients present in the soil in the initial phases and leads to its depletion.

The contaminated soil directly affects the human health either through the direct contact with it or by the inhalation of harmful soil contaminants which are vaporized. For example, the nitrate particles are highly dangerous to be dumped under the soil cover and thus are first mixed up with the ammonia to reduce their impact, but even after this the resultant mixture leads to highly dangerous health hazards. It is very important to stay protected from these hazards and to remain healthy. This course about how to achieve the perfect health will help you in understanding the concept of perfect health and the important steps that need to be taken to achieve it.

Noise Pollution

Noise pollution is the generation of sounds that are irritating and have a high pitch as compared to the hearing capabilities of humans. The basic sources of this sort of pollution are the machines that are extensively found in the industries and the transportation systems. Also, the loud noise created by loud music and other building activities can also contribute to this pollution leading to cardiovascular effects and other undesirable health effects for the humans. The need for preventive measures for noise pollution has always been there and this in a way has resulted in the emergence of hybrid vehicles which are less noisy than other contemporary vehicles.

The concept of noise pollution is a very unique one, as sound is something which has the capability to have both good and bad effects on the health of humans. Undesirable noises, in the form of noise pollution, can cause many health problems, but at the same time some soothing sounds can have a positive effect on the mental as well as physical health of the humans. Here is a great course about the the positive effects of sound on human health, and this course will help you in understanding how sound can be a highly positive influence for the mind and the body if it is controlled properly.

Thermal Pollution

The increase in the temperature of a water system by any means is termed as thermal pollution. The basic source of this type of pollution is through making use of water as a coolant in industries which includes the disposal of heat generated by the industrial processes to the water and thus resulting in the increase of temperature of this water.

The worst impact of this sort of pollution is witnessed in the aquatic systems where the level of dissolved oxygen is readily decreased by the abrupt increase in the water’s temperature and thus harming the life of aquatic species. The reduction in the oxygen level of the ecosystem is also witnessed due to the reduced lifespan of the primary producers.

Pollution Control Methods

The control of the emission of various particulates into the environment so as to bring down the level of the pollution is termed as pollution control. The main steps that can be followed in this regard include recycling and reusing the products that can be used a few times so that the waste produced from them does not deplete the environment. Also the waste water that is to be thrown into the water bodies from the industries should be treated first to bring down its hazardous nature which poses a threat to the aquatic natural species.